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PK Jaiswar
Tribune News Service
Rattan Khurd, March 29
The BSF shot two drug smugglers dead and foiled their bid to sneak in contrabands in the Rattan Khurd border outpost area last night. The incident came a day after gunning down of a Pakistani smuggler in the Majhmian border outpost area and seizure of 24 kg heroin.
In the latest incident, the smugglers fired at BSF personnel Abhijit and Prem Chand with an AK 47 rifle when they noticed their movement and challenged them. Two smugglers approached the border with a 12-foot-long plastic pipe with packets of heroin inserted in it. A couple of Indian smugglers, who had come to receive the drug consignment, were also watching them.
Both Pakistani smugglers were killed when the BSF personnel retaliated. An AK 47 rifle with a double-magazine containing 31 rounds of ammunition was found at the spot. Twelve packets of heroin were found inserted in the plastic pipe that the smugglers were planning to push through the electrified barbed fence for smuggling the drug. A mobile phone with three batteries and a Pakistani mobile SIM card were also seized.
As the smuggling bid was made close to the Kehar Singh Wala (KS wala) border outpost of the Pakistani Rangers, it hinted at their connivance in or incapability to stop such incidents.
Anil Paliwal, BSF IG, Punjab frontier, said the incident occurred around 2 am. When BSF personnel challenged smugglers, they opened fire on them. The jawans retaliated and the smugglers were killed on the spot. When asked about suspected involvement of the Pakistan Rangers in the smuggling attempt, he said they would take up the issue with the Rangers as per laid-down norms.
“As far as connivance or involvement of the Pakistan Rangers is concerned, we cannot comment on it. But, we will take up the issue during our routine flag meeting as per the norms,” Paliwal said.
There were around four smugglers. Two of them were giving cover fire to the smugglers who came close to the fence, said MF Farooqui, BSF DIG, Amritsar sector.
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